Tapping apparatus



(No Model.) 2 Shee ts-Sheet 1.

' J. N. KNAPP.

TAPPING APPARATUS.

No. 543,024. Patented m 23, 1895.

b 1 \nm #1 a m: a I Q A A I ll) 2 SheetsSheet 2.

(No Model.) I V J. N. KNAPP.

4 TAPPING APPARATUS.

No. 543,024. 4 Patented July '23, 1895.

" wiwunm UNITED STATES;

PATENT OFFICE.

JUDSON N. KNAPP, OF ONONDAGA, NEW YORK.

TAPP|NG APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 543,024, dated July 23, 1895.

Application filed JanuaryZB, 1895. Serial No. 536,315- (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JUDsoN N. KNAPP, of Onondaga, in the county ofOnondaga, in the Stateof New York, have invented new and usefulImprovements in Tapping Apparatus, of which the following, taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

My invention relates to improvements in tapping apparatus, and has forits object the production of a device-for withdrawing liquor from abarrel or other receptacle which is readily secured in position, is notliable to become deranged or injured, obviates undue loss or escape-0fthe liquor, prevents the barrel or other receptacle from becoming souror musty, and is particularly practical and effective in operation; andit consists inthe arrangement and construction of its parts, as will behereinafter fully set forth in the specification and pointed out in theclaims.

In describing this invention reference is bad to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part of this specification, in which like lettersindicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure l is an elevation, partly in section, of my improvedtappingapparatus, parts of opposite walls of a barrel or other receptacle beingshown in section. Figs. 2 and 3 are vertical and horizontal sectionalviews taken, respectively, on lines 2 2 and 3 3, Fig.1. Fig. 4 is avertical sectional view of the detached upper end of the tap or bushing,taken on line 4 47, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a perspective, partly in section,of the detached key or valve-piece. Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectionalview taken on line 6 6, Fig. 2; Fig. 7 is an end view of the detachedplug for the tap or bushing. Fig.8 is a vertical sectional view similarto Fig. 4;, the cap for preventing entrance of foreign articles Withinthe tap or bushing being shown in operative position. Fig. 9 is a faceview of the detached cap illustrated at Fig. 8; and Fig. 10 is anelevation of one end of a faucetcoupling designed to co-operate with thetap or bushing of my invention.

A represents the tap or bushing, which is preferably secured to one ofthe heads?) of a barrel or other liquor-containing receptacle,

and may obviously be secured to any desired portion of its wall. Theouter peripheral face of one extremity of the tap or bushing A ispreferably provided with screw-threads a for engaging a .threadedaperture b in the wall-b, and the outer end of said extremity is formedwith an annular shoulder a bearing against a washer c imposed upon theouter face of the wall I). The opposite or inner end a of the tap orbushing is contracted and gradually decreases or tapers in diameter, andthe portion of the internal chamber of the tap or bushing within itscontracted tapering end is formed with a tapering wall a which forms abearing-face or valveseat.

A key or valve-piece D, which gradually tapers in diameter,.is arrangedwithin the tap or bushing and closely fits the correspondingly-formedportion thereof. A pivotal pin E for the key or valve-piece D is rigidlysecured to the end wall a of the tap or bushing and projectsupwardlybeyond the inner face of said wall, and is provided with ascrew-threaded end formed with a longitudinal engaging-shoulder e. Thekey or valve-piece D is formed hollow, and its inner wall 01 is of lessthickness than the length of the pivotal pin E, and is formed with anaperture 01', of slightly-greater diameter than said pin, for permittingeasy revoluble movement of the key or valve-piece D upon the pin E. Anut e is mounted upon the screwthreaded end of the pin E, and interposedbetween said nut and the adjacent face of the end wall of the key orvalve-piece D is a washer 6 formed with a shoulder 6 which engages theshoulder e of the pin E and prevents revoluble movement of said washerand nut, and the consequent liability of undue detachment of the key orvalve-piece.

The entrance of liquor within the key or valve-piece is permitted by anaperture a in its sidewall, and said key or valve-piece is provided witha suitable non-corrosive lining D, formed of wood or similar material.The side walls of the keyor valve-piece D and the lining D are formedwith'apertures d d aligned with the aperture 0. for conducting theliquor therefrom. When the apertures a d d are in alignment, asillustrated at Fig. 2, the liquor is free to pass from the barrel orother receptacle provided with my invention, and when the key ispartially revolved, so that said apertures are out of ICQ moval of thekey or valve-piece isabsolutely prevented.

To facilitate turning of the key or valve piece its outer face is formedwith a shoulder D for engaging a corresponding shoulderf ot a plug orother suitable device F for closing the tap or bushing and operatingsaid key or valve-piece. This plug F is preferably formed with alengthwise passage f, communicating with the interior passage of the keyor valve-pieee D, and is secured to a suitable conduit or pipe (notillustrated) for conducting the liquor. The inner end of the plug F isformed with an annular shoulder or bearing-facef and interposed betweensaid shoulder and the adjacent face of the key or valve-piece I) is awasherf which prevents undue escape of the liquor to the exterior of theplug and the key or valve-piece.

The plug F is provided with opposite laterally-proj ecting lugs f whichenter opposite partially-circular grooves a, formed in the innerperipheral face of the tap or bushing in proximity to its outer endface. The entrance of the lugs f to the grooves a is permitted byopposite grooves a in the inner peripheral face of the tap orbushing,extending lengthwise from its outer end face to the former grooves a. Asclearly seen at Figs. 3 and 7, the lugs f and the grooves a are soarranged that their corresponding ends f a extend beyond theirdiametrically-opposite portions a greater distance than their oppositeends, and at Figs. 3 and 71 have drawn lines 1 and 2 across thediametrically-opposite portions of said lugs and slots in order thattheir described construction may be more readily apparent.

The upper faces of the lugs f and the grooves a are preferably formedinclined in order that the plug F may be compelled to move endwise whenbeing partially revolved for opening the key or valve-piece D, andconsequently the washer f and a washerf, interposed between the end faceof the tap or bushing and a shoulderf of the plug F, are compressed andobviate undue leakage of the liquor. It will now become obvious to oneskilled inthe art that the tap or bushing, the key or valve-piece, andthe plug are so constructed and arranged that the key or valvepiecenormally closes the aperture in the tap or bushing for the passage ofthe liquor, and can be operated only by the partial revolution of theplug, which enters the tap oi bushing only when placed in its designedposition and is prevented from withdrawal until partially revolved in areverse direction. The key or valve-piece is thus operated to close saidaperture and the barrel or other receptacle is prevented from becomingsour or musty.

My invention is generally used in connection with barrels or receptaclesfrom which the liquor is forced by pressure, and in order that all ofthe liquor may be withdrawn the upper end of a suitable pipe or conduitG is connected to the tap or bushing and extends beyond the same therequisite distance to withdraw the designed amount of the liquor. Thepipe or conduit G is of less diameter than the enlarged portion of thetap or hushing A and its upper end is provided with a chamber 9 ofgreater diameter than the contracted end a of the tap or bushing A, inorder to facilitate ready passage of' the liquor to the aperture a Theupper end of the pipe or conduit G maybe permanently secured to the tapor bushing,but is preferably removably secured thereto by a screw-joint,and the opposite end of the pipe or conduit G is provided withinlet-openings g, and may be supported by a socket Win a portion b ofthe barrel or receptacle directly opposite to the portion thereofprovided with the tap or bushing.

\Vhen the liquor is forced from the barrel or receptacle by pressure Ipreferably use a vent, which is particularly applicable foruse with myimproved tapping apparatus. This vent comprises an inlet-bushing lil,suitably secured in an aperture b" in any desired portion of the wall ofthe barrel or other receptacle, a plug H, and a valve 11 The bushing His formed with a contracted lower end 72', and the plug 11 is arrangedwithin the inlet-bushing H, with its inner end above the correspondingend of said bushing. The plug H is formed with a lengthwiseinlet-passage h and a lateral passage 7?, extending from the passage hand provided with an upturned end opening from the outer face of saidplug.

The valve 11 is suitably secured to the plug H for automatically closingthe lower end of the passage h and preventing egress of the liquor, andthe peculiar arrangement of the inlet-passage 7L2 prevents the entranceof sticks, wires, &e., which would injure the valve H The air or otherfluid for forcing the liquor from the barrel or other receptacle iscon-- ducted to my improved vent by a suitable pipe or conduit 1,provided with a nipple 2', which is detachably secured to the bushing Hin any desired manner, being here illustrated as provided with laterallugs 11' for entering lengthwise and partially circular grooves h hformed in the inner peripheral wall of said bushing.

It is sometimes desirable that my improved vent may operate byatmospheric pressure, and the only change requisite for rendering thesame capable of such operation is the substitution of a valvesufficiently thin or delicate to be operated by the atmospheric pressureas the liquor is withdrawn from the barrel or other receptacle.

1 In order to prevent the entrance of foreig articles within the tap orbushing during shipment of the barrel or other receptacle providedtherewith,I suitably secure a cap A to the outer end face of the tap orbushing. This cap is preferably formed concavo-convex in cross-sectionand of yielding material, and its peripheral edge is arranged in agroove A in the outer end face of the tap or bushin g, which graduallyincreases in diameter, as clearly seen at Fig. 8. After the cap isarranged in the groove A it is forced inwardly a limited distance, andis then firmly secured to the tap or bushing and obviously preventsentrance of foreign articles. The cap may be readily removed byinserting a nail or other article in a small opening A in its centralportion, and may be provided with an engaging shoulder if the aperture Ais dispensed with. The vent-bushing H is also preferably provided with agroove H similar to the groove A for receiving a cap. (Not illustrated.)

In cases when it is desirable to use my invention with a faucet the pipeor conduit G may be dispensed with and a faucet may be used having itsend or coupling J provided with a shoulderj and lugs j, similar to thelike partsfand f of the plug F. The peculiar arrangementof the lugs jwill then compel the proper alignment of the faucet, so that when thekey or valve-piece has been operated to openthe valve the faucet is inproper position to effectively discharge the liquor.

In the operation of my invention the pressure inlet-pipe is connected tothe vent, the plug through which the liquor is withdrawn is operativelyarranged within the tap or bush ing, and is then partially revolved forcorrespondingly moving the key or valve-piece and permittingthe outletpassage of the liquor. After the passage of the desired amount of liquorthe nipple i of the inletpipe is detached from the vent and the plug ispartially revolved in a reverse direction and correspondin gly moves thekey or valve-piece for preventing the escape of the liquor or theentrance of air, whereupon the plug may be readily withdrawn. The partsare so constructed that when the plug is withdrawn the key or valvepieceis in its normal position for closing the barrel or other receptacle andundue leakage of the liquor is entirely prevented, either when the valveis in its normal position or the liquor is being withdrawn. The key orvalve-piece is, however, readily withdrawn after the discharge of theliquor for permitting its repair, cleansing, or oiling, and thecomponent parts of my improved tapping apparatus are economicallymanufactured and are practical and durable in use. It is evident,however, that the exact detail construction and arrangement of myinvention may be somewhat varied, and hence I do not herein specificallylimit myself to such exact detail construction and arrangement.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a tapping apparatus, the combination of a supporting wall providedwith an aperture, a tap or bushing having an enlarged cylindricalextremity secured within the aperture and formed with a bearing facesurrounding the outer end of its inner chamber and a reduced taperingextremity projecting beyond the inner face of the supporting wall andprovided with an aperture in its side wall and having its outer endclosed and formed with a flat inner face, a pivotal pin projecting fromsaid inner face, a hollow tapering key orvalve piece within the tap orbushing having one end formed with an annular bearing face and its otherend closed and provided with a perforation for receiving the pivotalpin, and a fiat outer face engaged with said inner face, a nut arrangedwithin the key or valve piece and removably engaged with said pivotalpin, a plug detachably engaged with the key or valve piece and formedwith bearing faces adjacent to the former bearing faces, flexiblewashers interposed between said bearing faces, and cam faces on the tapor bushing and the plug for forcing the plug endwise and compressing theflexible washers, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a tapping apparatus, the combination of a supporting wall providedwith an aperture, a tap or bushing having an enlarged cylindricalextremity secured within the aperture and formed with a bearing facesurrounding the outer end of its inner chamber and a reduced taperingextremity provided with an aperture in its side wall and having itsouter end closed and formed with a flat inner face, said tap or bushinghaving opposite partially circular grooves in its inner face andlengthwise opposite grooves of substantially equal width extending fromits outer end face to the former grooves, the lengthwise grooves havingcorresponding sides extending beyond their diametrically oppositeportions a greater distance than their opposite sides, a pivotal pinprojecting from the inner face of the closed outer end of the reducedextremity of said bushing, a hollow tapering key or valve piece withinthe tap or bushing having one end formed with an annular bearing faceand its opposite end closed and provided with a perforation forreceiving the pivotal pin, and a fiat outer face engaged with said innerface, a nut arranged within the key or valve piece and removably engagedwith said pivotal pin,.a plug detachably engaged with the key orvalve'piece and formed with hearing faces adjacent to the formerbearing, and opposite laterally projecting lugs, for entering saidlengthwise grooves,

said lugs being formed of substantially equal width and havingcorresponding sides ex tended beyond their diametrically oppositeportions a greater distance than their opposite sides, whereby the plugis moved lengthwise, and flexible washers interposed between saidbearing faces, substantially as described.

In a tapping apparatus, the combination of a supporting Wall providedwith an aperture, a tap or bushing having an enlarged cylindricalextremity secured within the aperture, and a reduced extremity andprovided with an aperture in its wall, a key or valve piece Within thereduced extremity of the tap or bushing for closing the aperture, and apipe having one end secured to one extremity

